All Railway Gazette International articles in January 2015 – Page 5
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NewsThree bids for southern Bohemia passenger contract
CZECH REPUBLIC: State-owned ČD, DB subsidiary Arriva and ČSAD Jihotrans company GW Train Regio have submitted bids for a contract to operate regional services in the Šumava region of southern Bohemia. The contract runs from for 15 years from December 2016 and is potentially worth KC2·25bn. It covers the ...
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NewsRail industry news in brief - January 2015
Following an unsuccessful attempt to enter the Polish rail market in 2013, Czech open access passenger operator Leo Express has launched a daily Bohumín – Kraków bus connecting with its Praha – Bohumín trains and offering a similar level of comfort including wi-fi, drinks and newspapers. Work is ...
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NewsCSR Qishuyan locomotives delivered to Thailand
THAILAND: State Railway of Thailand has taken delivery of the first two of 20 SDA3 locomotives being supplied by CSR Qishuyan The six-axle metre-gauge diesel locomotives were ordered in June 2013 as part of a strategy to develop a 'hub and spoke' intermodal freight network. Each locomotive has a ...
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NewsSingle-section tram on test
BELARUS: Belkommunmash’s first Type BKM-802 single-section tram has entered trial service on the 11 km line linking the city of Navapolatsk with a nearby petrochemical complex. Derived from the articulated BKM-843/84300M design, the 1 524 m gauge four-axle BKM-802 is intended as a low-cost vehicle for use on smaller networks. ...
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NewsDelhi Metro launches bicycle feeder scheme
INDIA: Delhi Metro Rail Corp and partner Greenolution announced the launch of an expanded version of their Public Bicycle Sharing scheme on January 8. The aim is provide ‘first mile’ and ‘last mile’ connectivity for journey origin and destination points which are too far from metro stations to be walkable. ...
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NewsHeavy haul coal line opened
CHINA: The country’s longest dedicated heavy haul coal railway was opened for revenue operation on December 30. According to the Shandong provincial development and reform commission, the completion of the line is important to for China’s energy security. It is also expected to stimulate economic development along the route. Intended ...
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NewsStrukton Rail wins track maintenance contract
SWEDEN: Infrastructure manager Trafikverket has awarded Strukton Rail a €50m contract to maintain 360 track-km of railway in southern Sweden for five years from September 1 2015, with an option for a further two years. The contract announced on January 8 covers the routes from Malmö to Simrishamn and ...
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NewsKnorr-Bremse to buy Selectron Systems
SWITZERLAND: Knorr-Bremse has signed an agreement to acquire rail vehicle automation, networking and control technology supplier Selectron Systems. Selectron Systems is based in Lyss and has more than 100 employees. Knorr-Bremse said customers of both companies would benefit in the original equipment, operations and aftermarket sectors, with Selectron Systems ...
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NewsBLS buys back DB’s stake in BLS Cargo
SWITZERLAND: BLS has agreed to buy back the 45% stake BLS Cargo which is owned by DB Schweiz Holding for an undisclosed price. Announcing the agreement on January 6, BLS said the transaction would have no effect on the existing operational relationships between the companies, and DB Schenker Rail would ...
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NewsNorfolk Southern unveils publicly-funded GP33ECO locomotive
USA: A GP33ECO shunting locomotive remanufactured from an EMD GP50 at Norfolk Southern’s Juniata Locomotive Shop in Altoona, Pennsylvania, using funding from the Congestion Mitigation & Air Quality Improvement Program was unveiled on January 6. A total of 25 locomotives are being repowered with Tier 3 compliant EMD 12-710 ...
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NewsMoscow Metro orders 768 cars
RUSSIA: Moscow Metro has signed a contract with Transmashholding subsidiary Transholdleasing for the supply of 768 metro cars. The contract includes 30 years of maintenance. Transholdleasing was the sole bidder, and the tender was initially pronounced invalid for this reason. However, the bid met the tender conditions, so a ...
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NewsCBTC trials begin in Hyderabad
INDIA: Test running in ATO mode under communications-based train control has started on the Hyderabad metro, making it the first application of CBTC in India to go live. Tests started on December 30 on the 8 km eastern section of Corridor III between Nagole and Mettugunda. The seven-station section ...
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NewsSwedish EMU maintenance contracts awarded
SWEDEN: Alstom has been awarded two contracts to maintain commuter and regional electric multiple-unit fleets, which will take the total number of trainsets it maintains in Sweden to 219. One contract covers the maintenance of 63 EMUs, including 22 from Alstom’s Coradia Nordic family, on behalf of SJ which was ...
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NewsGreenbrier announces ‘strategic investment’ in Brazil
BRAZIL: The Greenbrier Companies announced an agreement to acquire a 19·5% stake in wagon manufacturer Amsted-Maxion Hortolândia for US$15m on January 7. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2015, and the US company also has an option to acquire an additional 40·5% stake by September ...
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NewsFirst Hitachi IEP trainset sets off for the UK
UK: The first pre-series Class 800 trainset ordered under the Intercity Express Programme left Hitachi’s Kasado plant in Japan on January 7 for delivery to the UK. It is scheduled to be shipped from the port of Kobe on January 22 and arrive in the UK in March. The five-car ...
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NewsWagon leasing company acquisition completed
EUROPE: Wagon leasing and logistics group VTG AG completed the acquisition of Swiss leasing company Ahaus Alstätter Eisenbahn Holding AG on January 6, following approval from the competition authorities in Germany, Austria, Poland and Russia. ‘I am delighted that we have been able to take this step just three months ...
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NewsGroundbreaking launches California high speed line construction
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority held a groundbreaking ceremony at noon on January 6 to officially ‘commemorate the start of sustained construction’ of the state’s high speed line. During the event, Governor Jerry Brown and other dignitaries signed a ceremonial section of rail at the site of the future Fresno ...
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NewsŁódź signs tram contract with Pesa
POLAND: MPK Łódź signed a contract with Pesa on December 30 for the supply of 22 Swing trams. The transport authority says that this is one of the largest tram tenders in the city’s history. Pesa was selected over Solaris, which was the only other bidder. The five-section unidirectional ...
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NewsHyundai Rotem selected for Istanbul metro contract
TURKEY: Hyundai Rotem has been selected to supply 17 four-car metro trainsets to operate Istanbul Line M2 under a €77·5m contract. The Korean company’s bid was selected by Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality ahead of a lowed priced offer from CNR Changchun. The cars are to be built in Adana by ...
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NewsDoha metro Gold Line financing finalised
QATAR: A 3·65bn riyal syndicated financing package for the construction of the Doha metro Gold Line has been finalised, Barwa Bank announced last month. The bank said this was the ‘largest infrastructure syndication in Qatar to date.’ Last year project promoter Qatar Rail awarded the ALYSJ joint venture a €3·2bn ...